The Ball Poem Extra Questions
There is a beautiful description of a boy who has lost his ball in a poem by John Berryman. Everyone who has to cope with loss is given the gift of wisdom. It is assumed that the subject is a boy playing with a ball. As the ball bounces out of his control and falls into the water, he loses control. Thus, the boy became sad. There is no other ball that can ease the poet’s sadness. Losing a ball symbolises losing a person.The author of the poem effectively conveys what it might feel like to lose something that we love and eventually grow up without it in this powerful poem. There are a number of The Ball Poem extra questions that should be prepared by students in class 10, as it forms an integral part of the final exam.
The Ball Poem Extra Questions
1. Why is it important for everyone to experience loss to stand up after it?
Answer: The poet believes that nothing is eternal. Everyone must experience the loss to help him bear it. It also teaches him how to recover from it and stand up. It will remind him to protect and preserve his possessions.
2. Do you think the boy has lost anything earlier? Pick out the words that suggest the Answer.
Answer: No, it seems that the boy has not lost anything earlier. The words that suggest so are, “senses first responsibility in a world of possessions”.
3. How does the boy feel at the loss of his ball?
Answer: The boy is very much troubled at the loss of his ball. He experiences grief at the loss of his much loved possession. Like a statue, he keeps staring at the ball with his desperate eyes.
4. Where was the boy staring down?
Answer: The boy was staring down the harbour where his ball had gone.
5. What does the poet notice at the beginning of the poem?
Answer: The poet sees a boy playing near a harbour with a ball. The poet saw his ball bouncing. It bounced and fell into the water of the harbour. The boy lost his ball. He became very sad.
6. What is the deep meaning hidden in the poem “The Ball Poem ?
Answer: The deep meaning of the poem is that our childhood can quickly fly as a ball is lost. Also me grow up unsuspect¬edly and face hardships like loss.
7. What does ‘‘in the world of possessions’’ mean?
Answer: The phrase means ‘in this materialistic world’. Materialistic things are those things which bring comfort and luxury in our life.
8. Why does the poet say, “I would not intrude on him”? Why doesn’t he offer him money to buy another ball?
Answer: The poet does not want to intrude so that the boy can get a chance to learn the real truth of life. He has to learn to accept the loss. The loss here means the most important thing or relationship.
9. Why does the poet decide not to give money to the boy or he buy another ball for him?
Answer: The poet says that he will not intrude upon the boy because he must learn to tolerate loss. The poet emphasises this loss. He thinks that money cannot compensate for the sense of loss. So he doesn’t give the boy money or buy another ball for him.
10. Who is the poet of the poem “ The Ball Poem”?
Answer: The poet name is John Berryman.
11. Do you think money is external? Share your opinion.
Answer: Yes, money is external as it can help us buy a lot of stuff but cannot buy us memories and moments. Those are only created with the most valuable things.
12. Write the sum and substance of the poem “The Ball Poem”.
Answer: In “The Ball Poem”, Berryman tells us about how our childhood can quickly fly by, as quickly as a ball is lost and how we sometimes unsuspectingly must grow up and face hardships, like loss.
13. What went into the water?
Answer: The ball went into the water.
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